


First Day at School

by yeonnnbinnnn_17



Series: PROJECT SEVENTEEN [3]
Category: SEVENTEEN (Band)
Genre: Kindergarten AU, M/M
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2018-04-22
Updated: 2018-04-22
Packaged: 2019-04-26 06:38:25
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 1
Words: 3,795
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/14396409
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/yeonnnbinnnn_17/pseuds/yeonnnbinnnn_17
Summary: It was Wonwoo's first day of school back in his hometown, Seoul, after having being born in America. Language, culture, food, people. Everything seemed so strange and scary for a 5 year old child like him. When he meets an overfriendly Mingyu in school, arguments and crying happens. But of course, a budding friendship starts too.





	First Day at School

**First Day at School**

Conversations in italics are spoken in English while the rest are in Korean.

 

“ _The wheels on the bus go round and round…_ ” A young boy sang as one of his little hand grasped onto her hand, the other hugging a kitten stuffed toy ¾ his height. His little feet had to take 2 steps trying to catch up with his mother’s footsteps. Fox-like eyes wide open as he tries to take in the unfamiliar environment around him. He was still adapting to the environment where people spoke Korean, instead of the usual familiar English. He would stare blankly when passing strangers cooed at him in Korean, only breaking into a tiny smile after 3 seconds of processing whatever was spoken. His parents had always spoke Korean to him at home, not wanting him to lose and forget his roots. It just took him longer to process since he spent more time in school speaking and hearing English.

 

Today was his 3rd day back in Seoul, his parents’ hometown, after having been born in the States 5 years ago. His parents made this tough decision of moving back to Korea after much contemplation, and needless to say, the toughest part was convincing their child, Jeon Wonwoo. Their eldest son was used to the culture, language and environment in the States. His introverted personality made it harder to him to adapt to new environments. They had to bribe Wonwoo with promises of new toys, a new big bedroom and extended TV time.

 

“Honey, remember that children here speak Korean okay? They wouldn’t understand you if you speak in English, so let’s try to speak in Korean. Do you remember your Korean name?” His mother spoke slowly, knowing that Wonwoo tend to just ignore the question if someone spoke too fast in his mother tongue.

 

“ _My name is Wayne!”_ Wonwoo grinned, eyes folding into little slits.

 

“Your Korean name, honey! Wayne is your English name.” His mother looked down at her son, worried that he might have forgotten whatever they have went through together the night before.

 

“Jeon…Wonwoo? My. Name. Is. Jeon. Wonwoo!” Wonwoo made sure to enunciate every word properly, pausing after each word. His smile from earlier widened, stretching from ear to ear upon seeing how happy and satisfied his mother was when he managed to speak a complete sentence in Korean.

 

 

 

“Alright baby. Here we are!” Wonwoo’s mother waved her arms around, laughing out loud when Wonwoo started clinging onto her leg, digging his face into her thighs.

 

“Hey~ Baby…remember what you promised me this morning? You said you would go to school like a good boy would. Come on…kitty would there with you so you don’t have to be afraid.” Wonwoo’s mother ran her fingers through his tousled black strands. The thought of being in an unfamiliar environment without his mother simply scared him. No one would explain things to him in English when he couldn’t understand and everyone would give him weird looks if he spoke English.

 

“No…no school no school…” Wonwoo’s eyes started welling up and he shook his head reluctantly.

 

“ _Hello! You must be Wonwoo! I’m Teacher Joshua! All your new friends are waiting for you inside. Shall we go in together?_ ” A young man with deer-like features greeted, bending down to Wonwoo’s level. This aroused Wonwoo’s interest. His new teacher could speak English!

 

“Look Wonnie, Teacher Joshua can speak English. You can tell him anything you need when you’re in school okay? Mum needs to go work. I’ll bring you out for cheeseburger after school. How’s that?” Wonwoo’s mother gave him a kiss on his forehead, smiling when her little boy nodded his head, wiping away his tears. He had a tight grip on her shirt as she gave him a last hug, wanting to lengthen his last contact with her. _You can do this…Mummy will be here to bring me home as soon as she finishes work…_

 

“Let’s say goodbye to mummy okay? We’ll see her when school ends!” Joshua held his hand out for Wonwoo to hold on to.

 

“ _I love you…I love you too Joonie~”_ Wonwoo kissed his mother’s little bump, waving as she stepped out of the school gates. 

 

“ _Is Joonie your sister?”_ Joshua asked Wonwoo, wanting to create a small conversation so as to help the new kid feel comfortable. Although kids of Wonwoo’s age are usually long past the attachment phase, it was afterall a new environment which may overwhelm the boy.

 

“Yes! _I named her._ Jeon Joonie.” Wonwoo beamed, his fear and uncertainty dissipated completely. He loved talking about his family, people he loved. Wonwoo was trying his best to speak Korean, but he couldn’t help mixing a few phrases of English here and there.

 

“Morning Teacher Joshie! Look! Daddy bought me a new pair of batman shoes!” A little boy greeted from behind Wonwoo, his little canines poking out as he waved his arms enthusiastically.

 

“Morning Mingyu! Wow! That’s a nice pair of shoes…I wished my dad bought me those too!” Joshua laughed when Mingyu giggled, putting his batman shoes away on the shoe rack.

 

“ _Wonwoo, this is Mingyu, one of your new friends in class! Although you’re 5 years old, you’ll be with the 4 year olds because the things you learn back in the States are different from here okay_?” Joshua explained in English, knowing how confused Wonwoo would be if he spoke in Korean. Wonwoo nodded even though he didn’t really understand, holding his kitten closer to his chest.

 

“Mingyu, this is Wonwoo! It’s his first day in school so he is a little scared. Can you be a nice friend and take care of him?” Joshua asked, waving for the boy to come over.

 

“Yes Teacher Joshie! Hello! My name is Kim Mingyu and I’m 4 years old! You look cute! And so is your little kitten!” Mingyu squealed, patting Wonwoo’s toy.

 

“No! Don’t touch!” Wonwoo screamed, running away from Mingyu, huffing as he crossed his arms angrily. He glared at the other boy, putting up a strong stance, a clear sign that he wanted him to stay away.

 

“Teacher Joshie…he’s not being friendly…he’s not sharing. But you said that nice children share toys…he is naughty…he even shouted at Mingyu…” Mingyu pouted, looking up at Joshua with his adorable puppy eyes as he covered his ears with both hands.

 

“Mingyu…we do not use the word naughty. Remember? Yes, I did say that nice children share. But did you ask Wonwoo for permission?” Joshua asked gently, breaking into a small smile when Mingyu winced, realizing his mistake.

 

“Oopsie…hehehe…” Mingyu grinned sheepishly, scratching his head as a blush creeped onto his cheeks. Joshua nodded his head in Wonwoo’s direction, encouraging Mingyu to apologize.

 

“Sorry? We can share my oreos later during break!” Mingyu pulled out his container of oreos, shaking them in front of Wonwoo’s eyes.

 

“O-Oreos?” Wonwoo’s eyes moved from the box of snacks to Joshua, back and forth several times.

_“_ If Mingyu wants to share his oreos, then you boys can eat them together during break. So, will you forgive Mingyu?” Joshua tilted his head as he asked the question, waiting for Wonwoo’s response.

 

“Okay…” Wonwoo nodded his head, eyes stuck to the box of snacks. _Only for the oreos…_

 

“Teacher Joshie…why are you speaking in English?” Mingyu asked curiously. He knew it was English his teacher was speaking because the children had short little English lessons with Joshua whenever they had free time. But he was truly confused as to why his teacher spoke English to Wonwoo when the boy looked exactly like he did, a Korean?

 

“Ah…that’s a good question. I’ll tell you the answer later once we get settled down with the rest of our friends okay? Now let’s go!” Joshua held both hands out, walking towards their class where Wonwoo got introduced to where his cubby hole was, and where everything else was.

 

“Alrighty~ Can my little puppies all gather in our circle with our cushions now? Teacher Joshie has something really really important to tell you guys!” Joshua whispered, trying to catch the attention of his 4-year-olds. He sat on his chair as the children gathered around him in a circle, already seated on their coloured cushions. All except Wonwoo and Mingyu.

 

“Here! You can have my favourite cushion! And you can sit next to me!” Mingyu offered the red cushion he was holding on hand. Wonwoo blinked his eyes before turning away like nothing happened, grabbing a blue cushion from the stack as he settled at the furthest side of the circle. Mingyu frowned, rejection was something he wasn’t used to. In fact, it never happened to him before. All the kids in his class loved him, and they would gladly share their things with him and want to sit next to him. Wonwoo was one special kid.

 

Joshua waved for Wonwoo to stand next to him, ready to introduce him to the class. He had a warm smile on, seeming to encourage Wonwoo to lessen his tension.

 

“So! We have a new friend in class! His name is Wonwoo. Can we say hello to him?” Joshua introduced, a gentle hand on Wonwoo’s back as the boy stood frozen next to his teacher. His eyes were wide, not used to being the centre of attention. Screams and cheers of ‘hello’s came from the rowdy group of 15 children, causing Wonwoo to flinch a little at the sudden loudness.

 

“Wonwoo has just came back from America, so he may not know how to say certain things in Korean. I want all of you to be helpful and nice children, help him when he needs to. Anyone wants to volunteer to be Wonwoo’s buddy?” Joshua asked, grinning when little arms shot up immediately, waving enthusiastically. His class was filled with children full of empathy and kindness, exactly how he taught them to be.

 

“Teacher Joshie! Me! I don’t want to be Seokmin’s buddy anymore…he’s too noisy and Wonwoo is…cuter than Seokmin.” Mingyu spoke up, whispering the last of his sentence. Apparently, his whisper was nothing less than his usual volume because his current buddy, Seokmin, turned around with an insulted look, gasping as he glared at Mingyu.

 

“I bet Wonwoo doesn’t even want you to be his buddy. Because you move around too much!” Seokmin crossed his arms, throwing a ‘hmph’ in Mingyu’s direction.

 

“Hey hey…let’s not argue shall we? Wonwoo, I’ll let you choose your buddy tomorrow. For today, you’ll just try to get along with your friends and I’ll be your buddy.” Joshua suggested. Wonwoo nodded his head firmly, glad that his teacher was giving him an option and not having forced to be Mingyu’s buddy. His impression of the boy wasn’t a good one so far, it being ruined after the boy touched his kitten toy without permission.

 

The class was split into two, group A having Math lessons while group B had Science lessons. They would switch once both groups were done, and after 2 hours of lessons, the children were allowed to do whatever they wanted during mass group time. Wonwoo grabbed a book from the library corner, settling down in one of the seats that was arranged around the oval table they used for lessons. He was halfway through his Rainbow Fish book when someone came trotting into the seat next to his. He was persistent in ignoring the presence, but a mop of black hair came into his line of vision.

 

“Go away! _I can’t see with you blocking me…_ ” Wonwoo’s brows snapped together as his hand smacked the head before his book.

 

“Oww! Don’t hit me…I just want to look at the pictures…” Mingyu frowned, rubbing the back of his head as he backed away, not understanding what Wonwoo just said besides ‘go away’.

 

“Mine. You. Go away.” Wonwoo held the book close to his chest. It was a habit of his to hold whatever it was in his hands close to him, almost as if it were giving him a sense of comfort.

 

“It’s not yours. This belongs to all the children here. Share.” Mingyu demanded, holding his hand out.

 

“No.” Wonwoo taunted, sticking his tongue out at the other boy.

 

“I said. Share.” Mingyu stood up, his hands moving towards the book. He held a tight grip on the book as he tried pulling it out of Wonwoo’s hands. Surprisingly, the older was strong enough, not budging a single muscle.

 

“No! Mine!” Wonwoo gritted his teeth, still not letting go of the book.

 

“Wonwoo! Mingyu! Why are you boys pulling the book?” Joshua called out from the across the classroom, startling both boys. Wonwoo released his grip on the book out of surprise, and that single move sent Mingyu to the ground. It wasn’t long before loud bawls came from the fallen boy. _Oh no…he’s crying…_ Wonwoo’s first instinct was to place his hand over Mingyu’s mouth, covering it in hopes of the younger boy to stop crying. His eyes widened as the younger bawled even louder, kicking his feet around as he threw a tantrum.

 

“What happened here? Mingyu, what’s wrong? Why are you crying?” Joshua hurried over, slight panic flashing through his expressions as Mingyu’s cries increased in volume. It was not uncommon for children of his age to cry over the littlest matter. But Mingyu was considered one of the bravest child in class, and he had kept a streak of not crying for more than a year. Despite that, Mingyu was one of the loudest bawler, and his cries could stretch for an extended period of time whenever he did cry.

 

“Mingyu…Teacher Joshie can’t help you if you don’t use your words. Did you hurt yourself?” Joshua asked, feeling antsy and helpless as he watched Mingyu’s small tantrum burst into a full scale one. The boy was now laying on the ground, kicking his legs around as he cried, big fat drops of tears falling down his cheeks. As Wonwoo watched from the side with a guilty look, Mingyu’s cries turned into screams. He was just as frustrated as Joshua.

 

“Wonwoo…do you know what happened? Why is he crying?” Joshua turned to the boy, eyes pleading for some sort of solution to stop Mingyu’s crying.

 

“ _I-I…let go of the book when you called our names and he fell to the ground…T-Teacher Joshie…I didn’t mean for him to fall to the ground…_ ” Wonwoo explained, arms tucked behind him as he looked at the ground. _He must be hurting a lot…he's crying even louder now…_ Wonwoo gulped as his eyes got misty, scared that the younger got hurt and the thought of his teacher reprimanding him pushed the tears out of his eyes.

 

“S-Sorry…W-Wonwoo is sorry… _I didn’t mean to let go of the book…I didn’t know Mingyu would fall…_ I’m sorry Teacher Joshie…” Wonwoo mumbled through his little sobs. Wonwoo was quite the opposite of Mingyu when it comes to crying. He would simply stand in the same position, chewing on his lower lip as his tears fell down his cheeks.

 

“I see. It’s alright Wonwoo. It was an accident like you said. We just have to make sure Mingyu isn’t hurt okay?” Joshua gave a reassuring smile to Wonwoo. The boy nodded his head nervously, wiping his tears with the back of his hand.

 

“Mingyu. Sweetie, are you hurt anywhere? Your hand? Did you bump your head?” Joshua asked in a concerned manner, visually inspecting the young boy. Mingyu shook his head, bawls lowering down a tone, inhaling gulps of air.

 

“Do you want to tell Teacher Joshie what happened?” Joshua run his fingers through Mingyu’s hair, hoping that it’ll calm the boy down. It worked as he anticipated, and soon the class was back to its peaceful self, only a couple of sniffs coming from Mingyu.

 

“I t-told Wonwoo to share the book like YOU always told us to, right? But he didn’t want to! So, I decided to take the book, and HE pulled it away from ME, not letting me have it. Then he suddenly let go and I fell…” Mingyu pouted, looking up at Joshua through his lashes that were clumped with tears.

 

“I see…it must have hurt a lot…my poor puppy.” Joshua cooed, pulling Mingyu closer to him, hugging the boy.

 

“I was just very sad you know, Teacher Joshie.” Mingyu sighed, hands wrapped around the older’s neck.

 

“Ah…because he didn’t share the book? Mingyu, next time use ONLY words. If it doesn’t work, then you can tell Teacher Joshie so we-” Joshua was halfway through his advice, but Mingyu interrupted him.

 

“No! No! I’m sad because I like Wonwoo SOOOOO much because he’s cute and handsome. He’s so quiet unlike the other children and he likes to read books! That’s good right? But he doesn’t like me…” Mingyu lowered his voice, looking around the class frantically, hoping no one except Joshua heard him.

 

“Ah…Our little leader has a crush on Wonwoo eh?” Joshua teased, giggling when Mingyu started blushing, his cheeks turning red.

 

“T-Teacher Joshie! You’re not nice…” Mingyu whined, covering his face with his hands, embarrassed.

 

“Why? I think you two are very cute. Like a little puppy and kitten, chasing each other around.” Joshua continued, raising a brow when he saw Wonwoo approaching them.

 

“Puppy and kitten? Is Wonwoo the kitten?” Mingyu asked, brows pinched as he cocked his head to a side.

 

“Mmhmm. You’re very happy and active all the time like a puppy while Wonwoo is like a little kitten, soft and gentle.” Joshua described.

 

“Ohhh…Yeah! Wonwoo is like that cute little kitty he brought to school. Cute.” Mingyu giggled, burying his face into Joshua’s chest.

 

“Mingyu…your cute little kitty is here.” Joshua tickled the boy, pointing at Wonwoo who was standing about a metre away. Mingyu immediately look up, cheeks warming up again.

 

“Teacher Joshieeeeee!” Mingyu whined, stomping his feet as he pouted. Wonwoo looked at them, confused at the scene unfolding before him.

 

“Is there anything you need, Wonwoo?” Joshua asked, grinning at the boy’s lost expression.

 

“T-Tissue. Mingyu…cried…” Wonwoo held out a few pieces of tissues, looking abashed.

 

“Gyu…” Joshua nudged the younger boy, nodding his head in Wonwoo’s direction.

 

“T-Thank you…” Mingyu accepted the tissues, not looking at Wonwoo.

 

“Wonwoo…is sorry. H-Here is kitty… _Mummy says kitty will make you feel better._ ” Wonwoo looked at Joshua, silently asking for translation for his last sentence. He held out his toy kitten towards Mingyu, like a peace offering.

 

“Wonwoo says that his mummy said that the kitty would make you feel better. I think he’s lending you his favourite toy Mingyu! You’re so nice to him Wonwoo!” Joshua cooed, pinching Wonwoo’s cheeks gently. The boy blushed a little, a small shy smile pulling the sides of his lips upwards.

 

“We can hold kitty together. And take care of it together.” Mingyu giggled, holding one of the kitten’s paw, grinning at Wonwoo like he wasn’t bawling his eyes out for the past minutes.

 

“Yeah. You boys can take care of kitty like daddy and mummy does of you.” Joshua nodded his head. He was so glad that they were finally getting along again, hoping that no more arguments would happen after that.

 

After the entire incident, Joshua settled the rest of his class down and they had lunch. Despite the few spills here and there, all of them were happy and fine. Wonwoo didn’t eat much, but it was understandable because he probably isn’t adjusted to the food in Korea. Mingyu on the other hand had a great time finishing up Wonwoo’s leftovers. In contrary to what Joshua wished for, another argument occurred during bathtime. He wasn’t there to see what happened, but the argument from inside the bathroom was loud enough for him to know that Mingyu and Wonwoo were arguing once more.

 

 

“Noooo! The soap will go into my eyes! I don’t want shampoo!” Mingyu squealed, trying to move away from the teacher in charge of showering them.

 

“Smelly. Wash hair.” Wonwoo backed the teacher up, reaching out for Mingyu’s hair with his hand filled with bubbles.

 

“I’m not smelly! No shampoo! I don’t want shampoo Teacher Yoonie!” Mingyu screamed, shaking his head profusely.

“It’s alright Mingyu. Look at Wonwoo. He’s washing his hair so well. Do you want to be like him?” Yoonie, the teacher in charge of showering the children asked. She knew Mingyu’s antics by now, shaking her head at him.

 

“B-But I don’t want the water and bubbles to go into my eyes…it hurts.” Mingyu pouted, looking at Wonwoo with envy.

 

“Your head…up. No bubbles into eyes.” Wonwoo demonstrated, tilting his head backwards underneath the water. Mingyu stared at him suspiciously, but eventually gave in to shampoo-ing his hair once the older held his hand.

 

“Close eyes. Good boy.” Wonwoo grinned, washing the bubbles off Mingyu’s hair. When they were done showering, they came out of the toilet, hand in hand.

 

 

“What is kitty’s name?” Mingyu asked with his eyes closed as Joshua towel-dried his hair.

 

“Mm…Kitty no name.” Wonwoo shrugged his shoulders, putting his sheets over their mattress, getting ready for naptime.

 

“How about…Minnie? We can call kitty Minnie!” Mingyu suggested, opening an eye to see Wonwoo’s reaction.

 

“No…not nice…” Wonwoo shook his head, lying down horizontally while hugging his toy.

 

“Woowoo? Gyu? Wonnie?” Mingyu tried all sorts of ridiculous nicknames he could come up with from their names.

 

“No. Teacher Joshie…help.” Wonwoo rolled onto his stomach, looking up at his teacher with adoration.

 

“Hmm…How about Minwoo? Min from Mingyu and Woo and Wonwoo.” Joshua suggested, waving his hand towards Wonwoo, asking the boy to come over and have his hair dried.

 

“Yes! Teacher Joshie is so smart! Minwoo is a nice name for kitty!” Mingyu exclaimed, jumping up as he clapped his hands.

 

“Wonwoo! Let’s called kitty Minwoo!” Mingyu held hands with the older, shaking his arm persistently.

 

“Okay okay…Kitty is Minwoo. Hello Minwoo.” Wonwoo kissed his toy on its nose, grinning happily.

 

“Yaaay~ Minwoo! I love Minwoo and Wonwoo!” Mingyu grinned, kissing both the toy and Wonwoo, to which the latter held his cheeks in shock, blush filling his cheeks.

 

Both Mingyu and Wonwoo laid down on their individual mattresses next to each other, Minwoo stuck in the middle. Despite their difference in personality, and having various arguments throughout the day, they managed to get along with each other. It was the start of a budding friendship, one constantly annoying the other and taking care of the other in their own ways.

**Author's Note:**

> Helloooo~ It's me again with a new one shot. I know I haven't written anything in like months. College got me bad bad...I wonder how authors actually write AND study at the same time. It isn't working for me T_T Anyways. I hope you guys do enjoy this short fluffy fic. It's quite bad in my opinion, but then again, everyone thinks differently. So do let me know how it is!! ^^


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